The suspect who was killed by Ohio police in a standoff after he attempted to breach an FBI office in Cincinnati was previously known to the agency and had handled classified military information while working for the Navy, according to reports.
The suspect, identified as Ricky Shiffer, worked for the Navy from 1998 to 2003 before spending another three years with the Florida Army National Guard as an infantryman from 2008 to 2011, according to his service record obtained by the Washington Post. He was then honorably discharged in May 2011.
SUSPECT IN FBI BUILDING ATTACK KILLED IN STANDOFF, IDENTIFIED AS JAN. 6 PARTICIPANT
During his service, Shiffer had handled classified military information while he was posted to a military submarine, according to the outlet. In that position, which requires one of the highest levels of security clearance, he oversaw electronic equipment for weapons such as missiles and torpedoes.
Shiffer had been on the FBI’s radar for months leading up to the incident on Thursday, but the agency said the “information did not contain a specific and credible threat,” according to a statement. The agency had been investigating whether Shiffer was connected to possible extremist behavior or if he was involved with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
The veteran was seen in photos taken on the day of the Capitol riot, law enforcement officials told NBC News. However, it is unclear whether he breached the building, and it does not appear as though he was charged in connection with the riot.
Authorities are trying to determine the motive for Thursday’s incident that prompted an hourslong standoff with law enforcement that ended in Shiffer’s death. The suspect was shot and killed by officers after he raised his weapon at law enforcement following unsuccessful negotiation tactics, police said, according to NewsNation.
Northbound Interstate 71 was shut down after the suspect fired a nail gun at law enforcement, held up an AR-15-style rifle, and drove away from the Cincinnati field office’s visitor screening facility on Thursday, a local NBC affiliate reported.
Shiffer appears to have posted on social media apps such as Truth Social and Twitter. The last post on his Truth Social account looks to have been sent after the attempted breach of the FBI building.
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“Well, I thought I had a way through bullet proof glass, and I didn’t. If you don’t hear from me, it is true I tried attacking the F.B.I., and it’ll mean either I was taken off the internet, the F.B.I. got me, or they sent the regular cops while,” the post read.
The attack on the building in Cincinnati comes a few days after the FBI raided former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, which was followed by a rise in calls to arms and threats against the bureau. During that search, the FBI recovered 11 sets of classified documents as part of an investigation into whether Trump had violated the Espionage Act.
